Crusaders blank leaves them lagging behind

Poole trip now a clincher in chase to join play-off pack

CRUSADERS were stymied in their bid to win promotion the Vanarama National League South after being held to a goal-less draw by a St Albans side that once looked like promotion front-runners.

The result leaves Hungerford six points behind the Poole Town side they face in Dorset on Tuesday night and 10 behind Dartford.

It was a game of few clean openings, although Hungerford made enough chances to have snatched the points.

Goalkeeper James Russell tipped over an early James Clark free kick, and Warren Bentley also fired over before heading wide from a decent chance and then being denied by the goalkeeper before Graeme Montgomery went close for the visitors.

Russell did well to block another Bentley effort before the break, ut Lewis Ward had to get down well to deny Charlie Walker and he also wasted a good shooting chance before the break.

Hungerford threw men forward after the the re-start but Ian Herring and Louis Soares were blocked out, and Jon Boardman saw his header cleared off the line as Hungerford had to take a point that leaves them with an awful lot to do in comparatively little time.